Anger mounts as UK taxpayer to pay millions for another Royal Wedding

In this file photo taken on May 19, 2018 Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex wave from the Ascot Landau Carriage during their carriage procession on Castle Hill outside Windsor Castle in Windsor, on May 19, 2018 after their wedding ceremony. (AFP photo)

The British Queen’s granddaughter’s lavish wedding, set to be held at Windsor Castle on Friday, could cost the UK taxpayer between two to six million pounds.

Princess Eugenie, the younger daughter of Prince Andrew, Queen’s Queen Elizabeth II’s second son, is set to tie the knot with Jack Brooksbank a few months after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle got married in another Royal Wedding partially paid for by the taxpayer.

Some British newspapers have already suggested that the cost of the security bill alone could rise to £2 million.

Providing security is likely to be one of the more significant expenses due to the presence of A-list celebrities and socialites.

"The estimated £2 million for security is just the tip of the Royal Wedding iceberg.This money could be better spent, and the government should act now in the interest of taxpayers and public services by calling for spending to be limited,” said a spokesperson for Republic, an anti-monarchist organization which campaigns for an elected head of state.

In this file photo taken on June 10, 2016 Britain's Princess Eugenie of York (2nd L), Britain's Princess Beatrice of York (R) leave after attending a national service of thanksgiving for the 90th birthday of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II at St Paul's Cathedral in London. (AFP photo)

“The Royals have shown time and time again that they can’t keep their Royal Wedding spending in check. Republic is calling on the government to publish a report of all costs to taxpayers, so we know exactly how our money is being spent...I wish Eugenie and Jack all the best on their special day, but a debate about taxpayer funding of the minor royals is long overdue,” said campaign group.

Security inside Windsor Castle will be handled by diplomatic protection officers - a branch of London's Metropolitan Police Service. Security in the town of Windsor itself will be met by the local force known as Thames Valley Police.

Security measures which will be provided are known to include anti-vehicle barriers, using sniffer dogs and providing a higher presence of armed and non-armed officers in and around Windsor.

After the wedding, the police will foot the bill but are allowed to make an application to the Home Office (interior ministry) for a taxpayer-funded “special grant” to recoup the money spent.

According to deputy police and crime commissioner, Matthew Barber, “the complexity of the operation, as well as the number of organizations involved, means that costs are still to be finalized.”

It is not clear how much the British taxpayer will have to pay and how much the Royal family will pay at this stage.

However, according to budget reports from the Windsor and Maidenhead Borough Council website the borough spent £1.2 million on Prince Harry's wedding back in May. This cost included £495,000 on stewarding, £108,000 on providing toilets, and £75,744 on setting up a temporary car park.

Further outrage has been sparked after it also emerged it will cost an extra £250,000 for a clean-up operation following the event.

Thames Valley's police and crime commissioner, Anthony Stansfeld, also told British media that the estimated cost of policing Prince Harry’s wedding was “between two to four million pounds.”

It is also known that £6.35 million was spent by the Metropolitan Police Service on security for the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton back in 2011.

Republic, which previously called for no public funding of Princess Eugenie’s wedding, has begun a campaign which demands that the House of Commons urge the Government to commit no federal money to the marriage of Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank.

More than 41,000 people have signed a petition addressed to the House of Commons requesting that the royal family pay for Eugenie's wedding in full.

A poll conducted by Republic before Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Royal Wedding in May showed three-quarters of respondents said the taxpayer should not pay.

The YouGov survey of 1,615 Brits showed two in three people were “not interested" in the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s big day.